Stop Fumbling With Sushi And Make A Pair of Automatic Chopsticks

There’s nothing worse than going to an Asian restaurant with no idea how to use chopsticks. For shame. Sure, you could do the sensible thing and ask for a spoon and fork, but something in the back of your head says, “That’s just bad manners!”

YouTuber The Q is back at it again, this time with an easy fix for your chopstick woes. I’m not sure if his project would save your pride but it’s sure to make people wonder what you’re doing, and we certainly think there are some prosthetic applications here. Let’s break it down:

1. Make the Housing Base

After cutting and sanding a few blocks of wood, drill two holes in one piece to start mounting your components. One hole is cut to fit a motor while the other will be used to hold a gear in place.

2. Fit the Electronics

After fitting in the motor on the base piece, clamp it in a vice. This makes it easier to solder the wires, add the electronics, and finish the battery enclosure for the automatic chopsticks.

3. Enclose the Components

Once everything is in place, the motor can be enclosed inside the wooden box. He adds a watch battery in the battery pack before screwing the last piece on top of the small box.

4. Attach Chopstick Holder and Spring

To complete the build the chopsticks need to be attached to the gears and with a spring to help them return to the open state:

First, two gears are added. One connects to the motor and the other to the hole right beside it. The motor is turned on and off with a switch on the side of the wooden box.

Two small copper hooks are attached to each gear. These allow a spring to engage the two gears and bring the chopsticks back to their original position.

Lastly, two formed metal brackets are glued to the gears. They look big and cumbersome compared to the rest of the build, but they have to be, considering they’ll be holding your chopsticks and supporting YOUR FOOD.

5. Snag Your Sushi!

Now all you need is a pair of chopsticks! Despite the crude appearance, this automatic chopstick machine gets the work done. Grab a pair and automate your sushi eating adventure. Here’s the project from start to finish.

As always, The Q makes a ton of easy-to-do DIY projects, all of which can be found on his YouTube channel.